Why You Should Celebrate Your Mistakes
When you make a mistake, big or small, cherish (珍视) it like it’s the most precious thing in the world. Because in some ways, it is.
Most of us feel bad when we make mistakes, beat ourselves up about it, feel like failures, get mad at ourselves.
And that’s only natural: most of us have been taught from a young age that mistakes are bad, that we should try to avoid mistakes. We’ve been scolded when we make mistakes—at home, school and work. Maybe not always, but probably enough times to make feeling bad about mistakes an unconscious reaction.
Yet without mistakes, we could not learn or grow. If you think about it that way, mistakes should be cherished and celebrated for being one of the most amazing things in the world: they make learning possible; they make growth and improvement possible.
By trial and error—trying things, making mistakes, and learning from those mistakes—we have figured out how to make electric light, to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, to fly.
Mistakes make walking possible for the smallest toddler, make speech possible, make works of genius possible.
Think about how we learn: we don’t just consume information about something and instantly know it or know how to do it. You don’t just read about painting, or writing, or computer programming, or baking, or playing the piano, and know how to do them right away. Instead, you get information about something, from reading or from another person or from observing usually … then you construct a model in your mind … then you test it out by trying it in the real world … then you make mistakes … then you revise the model based on the results of your real-world experimentation … and repeat, making mistakes, learning from those mistakes, until you’ve pretty much learned how to do something. That’s how we learn as babies and toddlers, and how we learn as adults. Mistakes are how we learn to do something new—because if you succeed at something, it’s probably something you already knew how to do. You haven’t really grown much from that success—at most it’s the last step on your journey, not the whole journey. Most of the journey was made up of mistakes, if it’s a good journey.
So if you value learning, if you value growing and improving, then you should value mistakes. They are amazing things that make a world of brilliance possible.
1.Why do most of us feel bad about making mistakes?
A. Because mistakes make us suffer a lot.
B. Because it’s a natural part in our life.
C. Because we’ve been taught so from a young age.
D. Because mistakes have ruined many people’s careers.
2.According to the passage, what is the right attitude to mistakes?
A. We should try to avoid making mistakes.
B. We should owe great inventions mainly to mistakes.
C. We should treat mistakes as good chances to learn.
D. We should make feeling bad about mistakes an unconscious reaction.
3.The underlined word “toddler” in Paragraph Six probably means _______.
A. a small child learning to walk B. a kindergarten child learning to draw
C. a primary pupil learning to read D. a school teenager learning to write
4.We can learn from the passage that _______.
A. most of us can really grow from success
B. growing and improving are based on mistakes
C. mistakes are the most precious things in the world
D. we read about something and know how to do it right away
请认真阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
You may have heard of Osceola McCarty, an 88-year-old woman in Mississippi who had worked for over 75 years as a 1woman.
One day after she retired, she went to the bank and discovered that her small monthly 2had grown to over＄150,000. Then to everyone’s surprise, she turned around and 3almost all of the money to the University of Southern Mississippi (USM) for a 4fund for students with financial needs. Immediately, she made national 5.
What you have not heard is how Osceola’s gift had 6my life. I am 19 years old and the first 7of an Osceola McCarty Scholarship.
I was a 8student, and I was determined to go to USM. But I 9being qualified for a regular scholarship by one point on the entrance exams, and a scholarship was the 10way I could attend.
One Sunday, I came across the story in the paper about Osceola McCarty and her generous 11. The next day I went to the financial aid office, and they told me there was still no money 12for me, but if anything came up they’d call.
A few days later, I was going out with my mother 13the phone rang. I was told I had been chosen to be given the first Osceola McCarty Scholarship. I was 14!
McCarty worked hard her whole life, washing clothes by hand. Now that she is 15, she sits most of the day and reads the Bible, that is, when she is not getting rewards. Every time I go to visit her, she has a new 16. She’s even gone to the White House. She is so happy and proud. We have tried to talk her into getting a VCR (录像机) so she can tape the programs and see 17on TV—she just smiles.
McCarty gave me much more than a scholarship. She taught me about the gift of 18. Now I know there are good people in the world who do good things. She worked hard and helped others, and in turn she has inspired me to 19when I can some day. So 20I plan to add to her scholarship fund.
1.A. café B. buffet C. laboratory D. laundry
2.A. expenses B. profits C. savings D. wages
3.A. returned B. donated C. delivered D. removed
4.A. welfare B. project C. scholarship D. research
5.A. headlines B. customs C. sympathies D. doubts
6.A. affected B. formed C. disturbed D. ruined
7.A. designer B. receiver C. contributor D. reporter
8.A. considerate B. dedicated C. casual D. sensitive
9.A. advocated B. regretted C. missed D. avoided
10.A. normal B. wrong C. legal D. only
11.A. gift B. idea C. decision D. plan
12.A. left B. raised C. available D. enough
13.A. since B. before C. though D. when
14.A. shocked B. excited C. puzzled D. encouraged
15.A. retired B. dismissed C. promoted D. transferred
16.A. job B. hobby C. life D. award
17.A. everybody B. everything C. herself D. us
18.A. giving B. understanding C. receiving D. loving
19.A. give up B. give back C. give off D. give in
20.A. suddenly B. originally C. gradually D. eventually
—I really don’t know whether I can be admitted to dream university in a month.
—________. Everything is possible.
A. Take it easy B. Just ignore it C. Never give up D. Take your time
—Don’ t you agree with what he said at the meeting?
—Yes, ________! It can’t be better.
A. approximately B. incredibly C. probably D. absolutely
A proper approach to ________ your learning efficiency is of great significance to every student.
A. improving B. improve C. be improving D. having improved
—Why are you looking so worried?
—I sent an email to my son in America last week, but no reply ________.
A. was received B. had received C. has received D. has been received
